BBC Flashcards
1
Q
Plausible
A
Believable, possible
2
Q
Being resistant to something
A
You are against it and don’t want it to happen.
3
Q
Idealistic
A
You have a clear and simple moral view of how things should be.
4
Q
Pragmatism
A
Being realistic and practical about what can be achieved.
5
Q
A platform (politics)
A
The policies and ideas of a political party and politician
6
Q
The status quo
A
The unchanging situation as it is now.
7
Q
Invention, risk-taking and long-term vision
A
Jeff Bezos
8
Q
Customer experience
A
A customer’s feelings about their experience with a business
9
Q
Put something at the heart of things
A
Make it the most important part
10
Q
Web traffic
A
The number of people visiting a website
11
Q
Legacy
A
All your life achievements that will continue after your death
12
Q
On the right side of history
A
Will be judged positively by future generations
13
Q
Greenwashing
A
Pretend that your company is doing more to protect the environment than it really is
14
Q
Carnivores
A
Animals that eat meat
Meat-eaters
15
Q
Insectivores
A
Animals like most bats, that only eat insects.
16
Q
Voracious
A
Very strong and eager
17
Q
Holy grail
A
Something that’s extremely difficult to find or to get
18
Q
The outbreak virus
The progenitor virus
The ancestral virus
A
Coronavirus pandemic
19
Q
Genomic sequence
A
The process of determining the entirety, or nearly the entirety, of the DNA sequence of an organism’s genome at a single time
20
Q
Cryptography
A
The use of special codes to keep computer systems and content safe
21
Q
Cryptocurrency
A
A combination of cryptography and currency, and it’s used for a finance system that is based on secure digital coins which are not connected to banks and governments.
22
Q
Whims
A
Unpredictable or irrational decisions or trends
23
Q
Be subject to the whims of something or someone
A
You can’t control them, you have no choice but to go in the direction those whims lead. Metaphorically you are a passenger of a self-driving car that might just decide to drive off the edge of a cliff. It might be an exciting ride, but it could end in disaster.
24
Q
The value of cryptocurrencies are notoriously volatile.
A
They have a history of going up and down by a large amount over a very period of time. And that’s nod good.
25
Take a dip
Swim
26
In the Maldives, access to shallow, warm sea-water lakes called lagoons makes it an unbeatable place for swimming.
Most citizens of the Maldives have half a mile to a lukewarm lagoon. Given that, they could be world leaders in swimming.
27
Someone who swims against the tide
Refuses to do what everyone else is doing.
28
In the past, swimming was considered immodest
Shocking because it showed too much of the body
29
Play hooky
Stay away from school without permission
30
Get frowned upon
Get disapproved of
31
Tipping
The practice of giving extra money to, for example, waitresses and waiters
32
The norm
What is usual or normal
33
Tacit
Not said but is nevertheless understood.
| There is a tacit pressure to tip.
34
Theoretically possible
It can be done but for different reasons it probably won’t be.
35
Carbon footprint
That’s how much carbon is used through the activities of a person, company or country
36
Something has caught on
Become popular or fashionable
37
Making informed choices
Making decisions based on good and accurate information, and carbon labelling is part of that information
38
From farm to fork
The processes involved from agricultural production to consumption
39
From farm to retail shelf
A carbon label might show an estimate of carbon print of milk from the cow to the consumer (farm-to-folk) but after it leaves the supermarket shelf, we don’t know how efficiently it is stored, how much is wasted and what happens to the packaging.
40
Dystopia
An imaginery future society when everything is bad
41
Non-verbal communication
Communication using physical gestures and facial expressions instead of speech
42
The appeal of something
A quality it has which people find it attractive and interesting
43
Compelling
It holds your attention because you find it so interesting
44
A battle to be won
A problem to solved or a an obstacle to overcome
45
Iron something out
Remove or find solutions to a problem
46
Disposable - reusable
Designed to be used once or a few times and then thrown away - designed to be used again and again
47
Rolling out
Which in a business sense is the process of gradually introducing something new. This could be a new system, new product, new technology or even a new way of doing things
48
A nudge
Is a small push, to encourage us to do something
49
Fight something tooth and nail
To make a strong effort to try to stop something or achieve something
50
Digital artefacts
Items that are produced and stored as electronic versions, such as images, videos or music
51
Non-fungible tokens (NTFs)
Virtual collectables - desirable objects that people search for and collect
It’s all part of a new tech craze call non-fungible tokens
52
Non-fungible
Have special and unique characteristics that cannot be interchanged with anything else
53
Something is rouge
It behaves in a differner way from what’s normal and expected, often causing damange
54
The wild west
Describe a chaotic situation without laws or controls, like in the early history of the western part of the US where people could do anythinf they want.
55
Pyramid scheme
Business tricks or scams to obtain money dishonestly
56
Devastating
Causing a lot of damage or destruction
Ex: A good fraud will build and build and build on it until the consequences to some people can be completely devastating.
57
Hard-earned
If something is hard-earned, you deserve it because you have worked hard for it
Ex: If somebody loses all their hard-earned savings, it can be completely devastating.
58
Fraud/ fraudulent
The criminal activity of getting money by deceiving people or tricking people by doing something dishonestly
59
Scam/ scammer
An illegal or dishonest way of making money by tricking people
60
Fall for
When you fall for something, you believe something that is a lie or a trick, to be true
61
Sleight of hand
Use of clever skills to gain something dishonestly
| A sleight of hand fraud
62
To rifle
Search something in order to steal from it
| Ex: The criminals get you to look over there while they rifle your pockets.
63
Phishing
Tricking someone by email or online to get their personal data by pretending to be from your bank
64
Sophisticated
Clever and often complicated
65
Latrine area
A toilet or outhouse
66
Repulsion
Strongly dislike or disapproval
67
To raise a stink about something
To make a strong public complaint
68
Out of sight, out of mind
It’s easier to forget something when you can’t see it
69
Go to great lengths
Try very hard to do something
70
Territorial markers
Smells in animals’ dung or urine marking their territory
71
Disgust
A feeling of strong dislike or repulsion
72
Nausea
The feeling that you are going to vomit
73
Shame
Is an emotion for the uncomfortable feeling we have when we feel embarrassed or guilty about something we’ve done
74
Crippling/debilitating
Making someone unable to deal with the situation. They can feel so badly about what they’ve done that they find it difficult to move forward emotionally
75
Effect change
Make change happen
76
Teflon-coated
Covered in Teflon
| Ex: Teflon-coated politician does not seem to be bothered by shame. They just ignore it and move on
77
Camaraderie
A sense of trust and friendship after spending a long time together and the creation of strong bonds or connections
78
Pioneer/trailblazer
The first person to do something
79
Go down in history
Become famous
80
Solitude
State of being alone
81
Indigenous languages
Languages spoken by the people who originally lived in a place rather than others who moved there from somewhere else
82
Pass something on to someone
Give it to someone, usually in your family, who lives on after you
83
Bumps in the road
Small problems or delays that slows things down
84
Immersion
The process of learning something, like a language or a skill by using that only and nothing else
85
Code-switching
The ability to change between two or more languages when speaking
86
Awe-inspiring
Causing you to feel great respect or admiration
| Ex: If you compare bitcoin’s energy use to a country like Argentina, it’s just incredible, awe-inspiring.
87
Monstrous
Very cruel
| Ex: Comparing bitcoin’s energy use to a huge country like Argentina sounds monstrous.
88
Get-rich-quick scheme
A way to make a lot of money very quickly
Ex: Is this another one of your get-rich-quick schemes? People invest all kinds of ways to make a lot of money quickly and with little effort. If you really want to get rick quick, maybe you should copy the technology tycoon Elon Musk who has just invested one a a half billion dollars in the cryptocurrency, bitcoin.
89
Risk-averse
Do not like taking risks
90
Dip a toe into something
Test it slowly and carefully to see how it feels
Ex: I invested in bitcoin a number of years ago… with the initial investment of only around five dollars it meant that my risk was essentially the cost of a cup of coffee and a pastry, and as somebody’s quite risk-averse when it comes to investment, it did allow me to dip a toe into bitcoin.
91
Pension plan
A financial plan funded by your salary to save money for when you retire
92
Put things into perspective
Assess the real importance of something, often by comparing it to something similar
93
On standby
Comparing the energy use of bitcoin with the energy used by electrical appliances left on standby - powered on and ready to work when needed
94
Cashflow forecast
A calculation of how much money you will have in the future.
It is based on your income, which is the money you have coming in and your expenditure, the money you have going out. You also need to know your assets, which is the value of things you own as well as savings and investments. This is balanced against your liabilities, which is the term for the money you owe, for example on credit cards or loans
95
To give someone a hand
To help someone
96
Green with envy
Describe someone who wishes they had what someone else had
97
A wavelength
The distance between two waves of sound or light that are next to each other
98
Govern
Control/influence
99
Sanctuary
A peaceful or relaxing place, in some cases it can be a safe place for someone in danger
100
Stimulation
The feeling of being excited, interested or enthused by something
101
Pale
A colour that lacks intensity, it’s not very bright, like sky blue
102
Taboo
Forbidden for social or religious reasons
Ex: In many socities, the menopause is still taboo, not talked about in public for social or religious reasons or because many people are not comfortable discussing it.
103
Menopause
A natural part of ageing that happen as a woman’s hormones decline and she stops having monthly periods and being able to get pregnant naturally.
104
Pay your dues
Do your duty
105
Surplus to requirements
No longer required
106
Ageism
The unfair treatment of older people because of their age
107
Symptom
A sign of illness
108
A double whammy
Situation when two unpleasant things happen at the same time
109
Agency
Being able to act independently and have control over your own choices
110
Backlash
A strong negative reaction to something
111
Dampen enthusiasm
Make people less interested in it
112
A concerted effort
Trying really hard
113
A glass of wine can be sipped and savoured, or just glugged
Glug - drinking in gulps or mouthfuls - not something a wine expert would do. For some people, drinking and serving wine is almost an art-form.
114
A sommelier turned wine into something approaching sheer God-awful pain
The work of a sommelier is nothing but pain. They seem to dedicate their life to wine.
115
Plonk
Cheap, poor quality wine
116
Connoisseur
Someone who enjoys a particular thing and knows a lot about it
117
Sommelier
Someone who serves and gives advice about wine in restaurant
118
Palate
Ability to distinguish and appreciate different tastes of wine
119
eSports
The world of competitive video gaming
120
A staple
Basic element
| Potatoes as a staple food and football being a staple of the school curriculum
121
Time-consuming
It eats up a lot of time
122
Discipline
Strict controls and restrictions and sticking to them
123
Put together an event
Set up and manage an event for others to take part in
124
Aspiration
Ambition
125
Clock up
To win or achieve a large number of similar things
| Ex: The average Mexican spend around 43 hours per week. Germans, on the other hand, clock up ther fewest hours.
126
Travelling to an office, sitting at a desk all day, and going home
Such a routine
127
Inflexible
Unwilling to change
128
Bias
Unfairness, treating one group of people more favourably than another
129
Active fathers
Being involved with childcare
130
Genre
A style of music
131
Lyrics
The words of a song
132
Cannibalism
A form of extreme violence
133
Desensitised to something
Don’t feel something as unusual or unacceptable
134
Aesthetic
As an art form
| Fans have an aesthetic interest in death metal. They appreciate it as an art form
135
Empowered/ transendent
In control of their own life and decisions
136
A hypnotic trance
State of mind that someone’s been hypnotised but isn’t completely in control
137
Suggestible
Easily influenced by others
138
Lose track of time
Become so absorbed with something that you are unable of the passing time
139
Get sucked in
Become involved in a situation that you don’t want to
140
Hone in on something
Give something your full attention
141
Mesmerised
Have your attention completely fixed that you cannot think of anything else
142
Knowledgable
Knowing a lot about something
143
Technophile
Someone who loves technology
144
Class
Economic and social position in a society
145
In real time
Happening live, without any pauses or breaks, not recorded
146
Embryo
An unborn animal or human still inside its mother’s womb
147
Hybrid
An animal or plant that has been bred from two different species
148
Inbreeding
When a young animal is born from closely related parents
149
Calf
Name for the young of several large mammals including cows, elephants, whales and rhinos
150
Ultrasound
Used to see internal organs or a baby developing inside a woman
151
Dissolve
It gets less strong, less immediate
152
Matter
Important to someone
153
Interiority
The experience of being inside
| Ex: the internal space of a car
154
Empowered woman
Who are not dependent on men or anyone else for the direction of their life, they make their own choices
155
Sexualised
Make them sexually attractive
156
Embody
To be clear and obvious example of something
| Ex: Female bikers embody male characteristics
157
Dig something up
Remove something from the ground
| Ex: Digging fossil fuels up and burning them create carbon emissions.
158
Intermittent
Not contiunous or steady
| Renewable energy is intermittent
159
Blackouts
Periods of time without energy
160
Machine learning
The process by which computers change their behaviours based on data they collected
161
Simulate
Produce a computer model
162
Shopping
Mooching around a shopping mall from one shop to another, spending money
163
Shopping online
Sitting in front of TV and browsing online is much easier
164
Insomniac
Someone who can’t sleep easily
Ex: sleep-deprived parents, shift-workers, gamers. If you’re an insomniac, it’s tempting to open up your laptop or smart phone and start shopping.
165
Online shops are open 24 hours a day and it’s easy to get sucked in and do some shopping
To get sucked into something
166
This shopping temptation can be particularly prolematic for those with mental health issues
Vampire shopping
167
Sleep deprived
Not having enough sleep
Ex: Our ability to control the impulse to spend and resist things like advertising is reduced when we’re sleep deprived. Mental health problems can have a similar effect so the mental health problems themselves make it harder to resist the urge to spend and they also caus sleep deprivation, so you’re alone possibly surfing the internet, and both the lack of sleep and the mental health problems make it harder to resist the things you can see. It’s kind of a double whammy.
168
Resist the urge
Stop yourselt acting on a strong feeling
169
A feel-good factor
Something that makes you feel happy and positive
| Ex: If you don’t resist the urge to buy things, it might have a feel-good factor
170
Regret
A sad feeling you get when you’ve made a mistake and wish you hadn’t made it in the first place
171
Stuff
Things or personal possessions
172
A given
Assumed to be true or certain to happen
173
A no-brainer
An obvious choice
174
Foster
Encourage the development of
| Ex: foster a new culture of sustainable consumption
175
Mainstream
Accepted as normal or common practice
176
Chancellor
The person in the highest position of a government in some countries
177
Hardline
Describes someone with traditional and strict beliefs that can’t be easily changed
Ex: hardline conservatives in a political party
178
A put down
An insult, used to make someone feel stupid or embarrassed
179
Put in their place
Made to feel they are less important
180
Cliches
Phrases or ideas that have become meaningless because they’ve been overused
181
Deadpan
Someone’s serious expression that shows no emotion
| Ex: There’s a fascination about what’s really going on behind that deadpan exterior.
182
Chronic insomnia
Long-lasting condition of not being able to sleep
183
Tossing and turning
Moving around in the bed trying to get to sleep
184
Counter-intuitive
It goes against what you might expect
185
Dilute
Make something less strong
186
Rapport
A good feeling between two people based on understanding and communication
187
Get on with someone
You like and enjoy a friendly relationship with them
188
Walking a tightrope
In a difficult situation which requires carefully considering what to do
189
Objective
Base your actions on facts rather than personal feelings
190
Frank
Express yourself in an open, honest way
191
Sarcastic
Say the opposite of what you really mean, in order to hurt someone's feelings or to criticise them in a funny way
192
Conscientious
A conscientious and hardworking clerk
193
Judicial process
Series of steps a legal dispute goes through in the court system
194
Criminal trial
A part of Judicial process
195
Rigid
Inflexible
196
Paramount
More important than anything else
197
Blueprint
Early plan or design that explains how something might be achieved
Ex: the blueprint for economic reform
198
Learning foreign language at early age
Dis: still learning own language - too much pressure - other subjects more important - maths, science, sport
Adv: critical learning period - child brain forming connections - earlier start, more vocabulary - fluent faster - successful future
199
Appliance
There is a hole in the appliance which renders it useless.
200
Insurmountable
So great that it cannot be dealt with successfully
| Ex: insurmountable problems
201
Brand attachment
The emotional connection between humans and brands. It goes deeper than loyalty so that people mentally connect a particular company with feelings of winning, being healthy and success
202
A health halo
The belief that something is good, like an angel’s halo, even though there is little evidence to support this
203
Ultra-processed foods
Foods containing added artificial ingredients like colourings, sweeteners and preservatives
204
Contentious
Creating or causinf arguments
205
Coming of age
Transitioning from child to adult
206
Predominant
Something that is the strongest or most important
207
Chant
Sing or repeat the same thing over and over again
| Ex: Chorus of a song
208
Existential
Relating to human existence
209
Iconic
Famously associated with something and instantly recognisable
210
A flood of
A large amount of something in a short period of time
| Ex: There had been a flood of video games that was just not very high quality.
211
Boom
A short period of time of sudden growth
| Ex: the video game boom was really falling off a cliff
212
Unplayable
Something that can’t be played or a game that is very difficult to enjoy
213
Hold up
The quality or standards of something hasn’t changed and still looks good and plays well.
Ex: Mario was one of those few games that really holds up today as it did then.
214
Discretionary
```
Something that is a choice for the person doing it and is not an obligation
#mandatory
```
215
Consistent
Something that acts or behaves in the same way over and over again
216
Impose
Force
217
Cashless
Card or digital payments, rather than notes and coins
218
Superstitions
Old beliefs which are connected to magic and mystery, rather than science
219
Garlic is supposed to ward off, or keep away, dangers like the evil eye - bad luck or harmful magic
Superstitions
220
The evil eye us an example of a blanket term - a phrase to describe many examples of related things
Superstitions
221
Chutney
A food mixing many flavours
222
Teach you a lesson
Show you how to act in the future based on your past experience
223
Hierglyphs
Symbols used to represent words in ancient Egypt
224
Decipher
Uncover the meaning of writing which is difficult to read or understand
225
Pearls wisdom
Wise words, sayings or advice
226
Prodigy
Young person with a great natural talent
227
Got the bug
Suddenly became very enthusiastic about something
228
There was no holding him back
Nothing could stop him from succeeding
229
A photographic memory
```
The ability to remember things in exact detail, like looking at a photograph
#a terrible memory
```
230
The odds of something happening
The chances that it will happen
231
A one-off
Something that only happens once
232
To suck at something
To be bad at doing something
233
Memorise
Learn it exactly as it is so that you can repeat it later
234
Deep learning
A complete way of learning something, so you can describe it deeply and come up with new ways of looking at it
235
Humanitarian workers see human suffering on a daily basis and can easily fall victim to compassion fatigue.
Compassion fatigue
236
Compassion fatigue centres on the idea that we can feel too much empathy and that feeling can lead to emotional burnout.
Compassion fatigue
237
Caring and fatigue are closedly connected.
Caring for others means taking on someone’s pain yourself and this can have unhealthy consequences on the carer.
238
The rapid acceleration of the news cycle, the focus on the next problem so quickly draws our attention away from developing those deeper habits as humanity.
Compassion fatigue
239
Compassion fatigue
Emotional exhaustion which reduces your feelings of compassion
240
Numb
Unable to feel any emotions becaused you are so shocked or scared
241
Learned helplessness
When someone stops trying to feel better because their previous attempts have failed
242
News cycle
The round of media reports and reactions to a news story
243
Headwind
Force in the opposite direction which stop you from moving forward
244
Prejudice
Unreasonable dislike of certain groups of people
245
Safe space
Place where you feel protected from danger and harm
246
Drop people in little boxes
| Put someone in a box
Judge them based on their appearance or a limited understanding of them
247
Feel uncomfortable
Feel slightly worried or embarrassed in a social situation
248
Walking on eggshells
Being very carefull about what you do and say because you don’t want to offend or upset anyone
249
Diversity
Many different types of people being included together
250
Phase something out
Gradually stop using something
251
Vivid memories
Memories that produce powerful feelings and strong mental images in the mind
252
Ingrained
Strongly held that they are difficult to change (opinions and beliefs)
253
Unique selling point
Feature that makes it different from and better than its competitors
254
Casualty
A person or a thing that suffers as a result of something else happening
255
Hermit/recluse
Someone who lives alone and avoids others
256
Dictum
A short saying often giving wise advice or expressing a general truth about life
257
Drop out
Reject the normal rules of society and live outside the system
258
Bereavement
The death of a close friend or relative
259
Treat
Reward or gift of something special and enjoyable
260
Mate
An animal’s sexual partner
261
Celibate
Living without sex
262
Animal eggs hatch
Break open to let the young out
263
Paradox
A situation which seems contradictory because it contains two opposite facts
264
The best of both worlds
Enjoy the advantages of very different things at the same time
265
Hedge your bets
Follow two courses of action instead of choosing between them so you don’t miss out
266
Amphibious
Live both on land and in water
| Mermaids
267
Deity
Goddess
| In some culture, mermaids are deities, the protectors of the water kingdom
268
Shape-shifters
Imaginary creatures with the power to change into different shapes
269
Grate
Annoy/ irritate
| Noise grates
270
Conscious of
Aware of
271
Get into the habit of
Start doing something regularly, often without even thinking about them
272
Suppressing
Preventing, stopping, reducing something
| We get into the habit of suppressing our listening
273
Honk car horn
Short, sound a car horn makes
274
Express yourself
Show how you feel
275
Emitters
Countries, industries or just things that produce - or emit harmful substances that harm the environment
276
Carbon-cutting ambition
…
277
Clean up its act
Change the way it behaves for the better
278
Alleviate
Make less severe or serious
| Alleviate poverty
279
Pointing fingers at others
| Pointing out each other’s flaws
…
280
Skinny dipping
The act of swimming naked
281
Naturists
| Naturism
People who think not wearing clothes outdoors is a healthy way to live
282
Advocate
Publicly support
283
At one with nature
Having a connection with the natural world that makes you feel good
284
Liberation
Being freed from something
285
Shock, horror
Mean st in not shocking or surprising
286
Body language
Smile, use hand gestures and facial expressions to communicate
287
Eye contact
When two people look at each other’s eyes at the same time
288
Brainstorming
Involves a group discussion to generate new ideas or solutions
289
Process information
Think about it carefully in order to understand it
290
In unison
Happening together and at the same time
291
Water cooler effect
Informal conversation between people at work
292
Close to one’s heart
Of deep interest and concern to one
293
Many of us love to nibble on these sweet treats
Biscuits
294
Biscuits can be sweet or savoury. But I prerlfer the sweet ones that are crips, crunchy and are good for dunking in my tea.
Biscuits
295
Biscuits are a handy go-to-snack for when I’m hungry or bored.
Biscuits
296
Fit for consumption/ edible
It can be eaten
297
Sustenance
Food
298
Prominence
Being important or more well-known
299
Sugar rush
Get a quick blast of energy from eating something containing lots of sugar
